Page 47 of No Mistakes (No Mercy #2)
A lot has happened in the last six months.
After we discovered who Rachel really was, many other things came to light, and, of course, the Ashford brothers did what they do best. They burned the sex trafficking ring to the ground.
Every deal, every contact, every piece of filth that tried to crawl back up was crushed until there was nothing left.
Carter found an in with the cops, weaving their influence deep enough that no one would see him coming, assisting us with hidden routes, container drops, and eyes on the whole city.
Gunnar decided it was his time to shine and turned to taking point on the ground, running operations with a heavy hand and making sure no one dared rebuild what we destroyed. He even started up his own boxing club for young boys to give them the best start in life.
Ant, my dear Antonio. He stepped back from the front line, but not out of the fight.
He put himself in charge of security, watching every corner, every shadow, like he’s making sure nothing ever touches us again.
My own personal bodyguard. When his brothers got over the shock of him speaking, it’s like the world shined just that little bit brighter.
He now laughs along with his brothers, gives them shit when they do something wrong and God .
Pride fills my soul from watching him become someone even greater.
Flynn became Axel’s right hand, the brother he leans on when the weight of it all starts pressing too heavy.
Axel has turned into the most feared man in Chicago.
People beg to be a part of his team, wanting protection for their businesses, to earn money they can only dream off.
When the news broke that he was in fact alive, it was like a god damn show down of who’s cock was the biggest as families try and compete.
But of course, none of them won, seeing majority of them are now on his payroll.
Eva and I, on the other hand, walked away from the PI firm.
It was never really ours, not when it was always built on someone else’s control.
Now we’re part of the Ashford business, running things in our own way, on our own terms. Each time we have a new job, Ant and Axel do everything they can to stop us, which never works out in their favour.
In the last few months, we’ve destroyed networks, gathered evidence to assist the brothers on takedowns, and even helped save lives. There’s still so much left to do, so many battles that are yet to begin. But we’ve already pulled people out of the dark, giving them the chance to be them again.
It turns out Vinny’s family had been watching over the house all of those years the brothers lived in Boston, keeping it from crumbling into dust. Now they’re here with us, sown into the chaos like a second family. Loud, protective, and impossible not to love.
The Ashford house in Lake Forest doesn’t feel abandoned anymore. It’s alive with love, happiness, and joy.
The back lawn hums with laughter, music spilling from the speakers propped against the porch. The scent of smoke and grilled burgers fills the air, mingling with summer heat. Fireflies flicker above the grass like tiny sparks, competing with the fireworks waiting for their turn in the night sky.
Vinny’s sisters weave through the crowd, handing out plates piled high with food, while Vinny himself leans against the grill, arguing with Gunnar over whether steak should ever be cooked past medium rare.
Flynn is deep in conversation with one of Vinny’s nephews, pointing out constellations above while they wait for the show to start.
Axel and Eva sit on the porch steps, their drinks forgotten as they laugh at something private, her head resting on his shoulder like it was always meant to be there.
And then there’s Carter.
He has a lighter in one hand, a box of fireworks in the other, and a grin on his face that makes everyone else slowly start backing up.
“This is going to be beautiful,” he says with a confidence that convinces no one.
“It’s going to be a hospital trip,” Gunnar mutters, shaking his head.
Eva groans, dragging her hands down her face. “Why did anyone let him buy fireworks?”
“Because,” Axel replies dryly, sipping his beer, “no one can actually stop him.”
“Is it too late to even try and stop him?” I murmur, leaning into Ant, who sits beside me on the picnic table bench. His arm wraps around my shoulders, warm and grounding.
Ant’s laugh rumbles low against my ear. “Way too late. He’s been planning this for weeks.”
“Ten bucks says he blows his hand off,” Axel calls, not even fazed by the event unfolding in front of him.
“Twenty says he takes Gunnar with him,” Flynn adds, sipping his beer.
“Joke’s on you,” Gunnar fires back. “I’m standing nowhere near him.”
Carter straightens, flicking a lighter like it’s magic. “Mark my words. This will be the greatest Fourth of July in history!”
“Or our last,” Vinny mutters, shaking his head as his sisters giggle.
The first fuse sparks to life, hissing like a snake, and half the yard ducks behind whatever cover they can find. “Fire in the hole!” Carter yells.
The rocket screams upward before bursting in an explosion of red, white, and blue, the sound rattling through my chest. A second follows, then a third, the night sky lighting up like a battlefield of colour.
Smoke rolls across the yard, Carter coughing and waving his hand, but still grinning like he just conquered the world.
“See?” he wheezes. “Flawless execution.”
The yard erupts with laughter-deep, unrestrained, the kind that only comes when the danger’s finally over.
Ant presses a kiss against my temple, his voice soft but sure, steady in a way that still makes my chest ache. “Welcome to the family, trouble.”
And for the first time, I know he’s right.
But as the fireworks crackle overhead, my gaze drifts to Flynn.
He isn’t laughing like the others. He stands off to the side, his focus on a girl sitting quietly on the porch swing.
The same girl I once fought for in that ballroom full of monsters.
Flynn leans down, speaking softly, and she smiles shyly up at him, her blanket slipping from her shoulders.
A different kind of spark ignites in that moment, one that has nothing to do with fireworks.
Ant’s lips brush close to my ear, low enough that no one else can hear. “Do you think they’ll notice if we’re not here?”
I smile, turning my face toward his. “No. But this time, I get to wear the mask.”
His smirk is instant, wicked, and warm all at once. “Only if I don’t catch you first.”